I am so over hosting. Star ratings can bite me

I hate that. ‘Let’s sue’ seems to be so many people’s answer to everything.

I’m sorry, but a host doesn’t always have time to test everything in a room between guests. We’ve hosted hundreds of guests are Superhosts and still miss odds and ends. We certainly try. Guest also break crap constantly and leave it for us to find.

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I understand that @B_anchor.

However there are some key facilities it’s always worth checking such as showers, cookers, TV remotes etc which should be part of any turn around process.

Particularly because guests don’t always tell us when they break or damage stuff.

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I have in my house rules for them to tell me if they break or damage something.

I do as well.

You really turn on the shower every time? It never would have even crossed my mind to do so. I turn on the bathtub faucet when I’m cleaning, but I never flip the switch up to the shower head.
And you turn on the stove as well? (I’m assuming that’s what a cooker is?) I don’t do any of that. I would expect a guest to tell me if something isn’t working. Otherwise, I assume that it works the same as last time I tested it (which might be monthly.)

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I had a guest stay with me for five days over two separate stays. She was older and battling cancer and somewhat needy. She was also very sweet and generous, bringing small presents for me and the dogs and leaving a thank you card both times. However, because of her quirks and neediness she wasn’t my favorite type of guest. Anyway on her second visit she texted me about the shower not working. I asked if she wanted me to come look at it and she replied “please.” All I could think of was “please, lord, let her not be naked when I go to her room.” LOL.

Anyway there is a shut off valve on the pipe so the water flow can be adjusted from zero to high pressure. That had been pushed all the way over so no water flow. I’m sure I did it while cleaning. So now I do always check to see that the shower works.

I also check that the remote controls work, that the fridge setting hasn’t been either turned off or to freezing (after having a glass water bottle freeze and break). If you have whole house rental there are probably a lot of things you should be checking each time to prevent problems from occuring, especially since you are trying to get your star rating back up.

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Yep - why on earth would I say it if I didn’t ?

It takes seconds to turn them on as you are going around cleaning.

Why would you leave it to a guest to tell you something had broken when they arrived? it’s not a great first impression.

Much easier to make it part of your cleaning routine.

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Agreed, turning on the shower is not a huge deal while cleaning, and of course I will be checking it regularly now. But am I expected to try out every single thing in the house every time I’m there? I mean, should I sit on each piece of furniture to see if the cushions are getting flat? Obviously, I’m being facetious, but I don’t feel like the blame should be on me for this issue. I was horrified and embarrassed that it happened and wish that I had know about it before their stay. But I can check 500 things while I’m cleaning, and the 501st thing is the one that will be dysfunctional and get a complaint. Know what I mean? I can’t see every single thing every single time. I feel that the guest has a responsibility to notify me if something is wrong, as it states in my house rules.

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This is another case of it doesn’t matter where you feel the blame should be. This is a post about star ratings, right?

If something goes wrong there is a chance that the guest is going to blame you, whether it’s “house is hard to find,” “it rained all weekend” or “shower doesn’t work.” Some things are 100% out of your control and some things are 100% in your control. The more things you check, the fewer things can go wrong and the better your chances of getting good reviews.

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That’s what is so unfair about reviews. Some guests like to stick a knife in the host’s back after the fact and for something not brought to the host’s attention until after the fact. If they don’t have the guts to bring it up during their stay, I don’t think their complaints should be published.
Complaints should be explained to the host during the stay and the host should be given the opportunity to correct whatever or to explain why it cannot be corrected.
For instance, a shower doesn’t work. If not brought to the host’s attention it is not going to get fixed. If brought to the host’s attention there may be a problem of getting a plumber there immediately or perhaps the host can fix it himself.

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But I can check 500 things while I’m cleaning, and the 501st thing is the one that will be dysfunctional and get a complaint.

That’s certainly possible. But it’s probably more likely that it’s going to be one of the 500 things that is a problem.

I can’t check everything, every time, but I can check some things each time. My biggies are lamps/light bulbs, appliances, faucets/drains and the shower curtain liner.

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Absolutely. All appliances, all sinks/taps/shower,all remotes, ceiling fans, all lights including exterior. Yes, if you or the guest needs to do something simple like replace a light bulb in a lamp or a battery in a remote, it’s no big deal. But the fact that it was necessary, that the host hasn’t checked things first, is a mark against the host and every small thing can add up.

I also check that windows open properly, remove outdated magazines (and add new ones), test all window blinds… I thought everyone did these things.

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I do turn on all lights in the house, but other than that, my main focus is getting the house spotlessly clean. While I’m cleaning, I’m using faucets and toilets, so I know those all work. I do remove outdated coupons/menus in my welcome binder and add new. I don’t check window blinds, but they’re all brand new, so I sure hope they are still working!

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That’s what I thought until our a few of our installed-less-than-a-year-ago blinds failed. :slight_smile:

I have 5 hours for a same day turnover so have ample time to check everything in addition to getting everything cleaned.

I kind of agree that the laundry list of possible things to check between guests overfloweth and you may well miss that one thing the guest complains about. I think it is great that some hosts do all of these checks, but for me, time is money. I have a cleaner but if I made her follow a list of things a guest might complain about that cost would have to be passed along to the guest. And let’s face it, most guests aren’t willing to pay a premium for that type of service.

I think you got unlucky. I have never, ever had a shower head malfunction and I have never had it checked by my cleaners. For what, let’s say, 1 out of 1000 (or idk maybe 10,000) times it malfunctions is that check being repeated that many times really worth 1 extra star that you may not have gotten anyway? I mean, this guest rented a hotel room to shower, right? No rational person does that or thinks that passes as the truth.

My best guess is that your were doomed with this guest and sometimes you just have to take the hit. And you are right that the guest should have informed you. They may be a customer but even in 5 star hotels, guests are expected to complain if something isn’t working. Which leads to my next question… did you test it after they left? I don’t understand how that tiny granule pictured in your hand held back the entire pressure of your water supply.

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Yes, I did. There were actually 3 pieces in the shower head, but the one in the picture was the largest. They really were tiny, but they blocked enough of the water in the tiny opening in the back of the shower head to create a partial blockage. (The water was coming out, just not as much as there should have been.) The city did a water main repair just before this guest arrived, and they said it was possible for debris to be in the water lines, but I assumed that by flushing the outside line like they instructed, it would avoid getting the debris into the house lines.

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I am so over guests complaining after they leave. All my pre correspondence states, CONTACT me so I can fix it!!!

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It may be that even if you HAD checked the shower and found it working, that bit of debris could have got stuck after that. It seems like a sudden fault, could happen at any point, ie, after the previous guests and before the ‘let’s shower in a hotel guests’

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Sods law says if anything breaks, it’ll be with awkward guests.
I’ve never had guests check out late, unless it’s arranged in advance and if it is possible. Sods law has caused my Friday night (hungover) guests to have just left, an hour late, on one of the only 2 days this year, that I’ve had to do a quick turn around.
I messaged the incoming guests at 10;30am, I might be lucky that they can’t get here til WAY after 2pm check in (the late-out guests didn’t get here til 9pm last night).
“We’re 10minutes away, shall we come?”

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I see. So there was some water coming out. Was it enough to take a shower or would it be fair to say it wasnt possible?

Unless I’m missing here, no one pays for other accommodation to take a shower without mentioning there is a problem with the one in accommodation they’ve already paid for. Perhaps they can show you the receipt from the other accommodation they booked lol.

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